You're reading: US Embassy: Ukraine’s authorities should support independent journalism

The United States is concerned about the impact on the freedom of the press in Ukraine in connection with the court’s decision to check 17 months of SMS messages in the phone of the editor-in-chief of the Schemes anti-corruption investigations program, Natalia Sedletska.

“We are concerned that yesterday’s court decision regarding investigative reporter Natalia Sedletska could have a chilling effect on press freedom and anti-corruption efforts in Ukraine. Ukrainian authorities should support independent journalism,” the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine wrote on Twitter.

As reported, on September 4 the editorial board of the Schemes anti-corruption investigations program stated that the Prosecutor General’s Office had received access to the telephone information of editor-in-chief Natalia Sedletska and regarded it as pressure on an independent journalist.